Christmas Notebook

sisters’ weekend

May 17, 2008 – 10:35 pm

I, my four sisters and our two sisters-in-law try to get together for a weekend every year or two. This is the weekend. 🙂

While we gathered in the motel room, waiting for everyone to arrive, Paula caught up on the local news.

Of course, as it usually happens when we have a family get-together, someone decided we had to make a Wal-Mart run. Why is that?? So off we headed for Wal-Mart, then picked up pizzas to take back to the motel. We enjoyed the pizzas while we watched the movie “Enchanted.”

Saturday morning, we went antiquing. We visited two antique malls. I will have to take pictures of the items I found. It’s always fun to look! Addyson slept through the first mall. Later in the day, her Grandma picked her up for the evening.

Margaret and Mary are the twins in our family. They are 18 months younger than I am.

Addyson had a little picnic (a few ounces of formula) and then we packed her off to the next antique mall. She was very agreeable to antiquing with her Aunt-iques.

In the afternoon, we drove out to the state park and enjoyed lunch, overlooking the lake.

Is she not the cutest thing? Looks just like her daddy, I’m thinkin’.

After lunch we retired to our rooms for a while. Some visited, some napped, I blogged part of this post. Later we met at our parents’ house, then took them out to dinner at a nearby steak house to celebrate Dad’s 75th birthday. I took this shot for 7 Days of Shooting for “Shiny Saturday”…my family reflected in a shiny ball.

Here they are for real. 🙂

There was some discussion about what to do next…take a walk? work on a craft project? play a game? We settled on playing “Apples to Apples.” If you don’t have this game, get it! Lots of fun, a great ice-breaker, a game that fits a wide range of ages.

Lots of laughter!

I even let Genny take a picture of moi.

Tomorrow AM, Genny and I plan to visit Dad for a while before heading home in time for church. We’ve had a fun sisters’ weekend, enjoyed beautiful sunny weather, and stored away another batch of family memories. I hope you’ve had a great weekend, too.

Next day…Goodbye! Sisters’ Weekend is over for another year…

~~Rhonda

quilt along ~ week 3

May 16, 2008 – 11:55 am

I quickly pieced the blocks for week 3 of Amandajeans’s quilt along this morning. I am attending Sisters’ Weekend with my four sisters and two SILs today through Sunday and wanted to get these done before I left. Done!

This is “Ohio Star” for the cottage quilt, for which I’m using soft colors.

And this is for the snowflake fabric quilt top.

I’m feeling better for being caught up and ready for block four on Monday. ~~Rhonda

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in quilting | Tagged quilt, quilt along | Comments (1)

around the yard

May 15, 2008 – 9:59 am

Last year we had a hard freeze in April that decimated the iris blooms. This year they must be making up for that as they are loaded with blossoms. If we get no rain next week, the yard should be gorgeous and ablaze with color.

The large lilacs are done, but the Korean lilacs and Lilac ‘Miss Kim’ are blooming right now.

Korean Lilac

‘Miss Kim’ is a very fragrant lilac and a bit later than the Koreans.

We’ve had a lot of rain the past week, with more coming today. Everything is soaked. When we walk across the grass, it squishes like a sponge.

Hosta ‘June’

The St. Louis news had a story about the trees that are falling over due to the complete saturation of the ground. Our pear tree has been slightly off kilter for some time, but today it has fully reclined. Just got too top heavy for the wet ground, I guess. DH plans to cut it down. We will have to move all the hostas.

The hostas are doing great so far. They grow quickly with all the rain we’ve had.

Hosta ‘Inniswood’ and Hosta ‘Gold Tiara’

Color is popping up all over the yard. This old yellow rose came from a plant that belonged to DH’s paternal great-grandmother.

Our first peony opened this week. This is ‘Illiani Warrior.’

‘Lavender Lady’ will be next.

I love the soft wooly grey of Lamb’s Ear.

The geraniums are beginning to bloom. This one contrasts nicely with the hosta ‘Pineapple Upside Down Cake.’

When DH gets home from work, the first thing we do is walk the yard. Have to see what bloomed today! 🙂

~~Rhonda

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in our garden, spring | Tagged flowers, garden, spring | Comments (0)

a little yard work

May 14, 2008 – 1:56 pm

Today is cool and cloudy, a little light mist. We did go out and do about an hour and a half of yard work, but when the mist came up it was too chilly to stay out. Temps are about 60*F.

DH moved the two Paradigm hostas that were sitting too close to the Blue Angel.

And he mulched them.

A few new irises are out today.

‘Holy Night’

This one came from my mother’s sister. Because we don’t know the name, we call it “Aunt Jane.” It has a smallish flower, but is intensely fragrant. The scent will carry quite a distance. Lovely!

Iris “Granny Ellis” ~ We were given this iris from the yard of a dear woman from our church family. Not knowing the actual name, we named it after her.

Just beginning to open is Iris ‘Fiord.’

I bought Iris ‘Clarence’ because that is my paternal grandfather’s name.

Iris ‘Sierra Grande’ is a beautiful blossom.

‘Michigan Pride’ opened yesterday.

As did ‘Mary Frances.’

‘Celtic Prince’ also opened yesterday.

I’ll post other pictures from around the yard later. Right now, I have laundry to do. 🙂 ~~Rhonda

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in our garden, spring | Tagged flowers, garden, hostas, iris, spring | Comments (0)

Menu Monday

May 13, 2008 – 4:53 pm

I have been gone for two days, so am getting a late start on Menu Plan Monday. Here’s our dinner menu for the week.

Tues. turkey sandwiches
veggies / dip

Wed. sloppy joes
chips / dip
corn on the cob
asparagus

Thurs. salmon with honey-dijon sauce
peas
corn
green salad

Fri. chicken and noodles
asparagus
carrots
bread/butter

Sat. leftovers

Sun. roast beef in the crock pot
mashed potatoes
green beans
corn
green salad

In a hurry, so will post more later or tomorrow AM. ~~Rhonda

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in menu | Tagged menu, Menu Monday | Comments (0)

flutterbies

May 11, 2008 – 2:37 pm

I always thought flutter-by was a better name than butterfly for these beautiful fluttering insects. Yesterday we went to the Butterfly House in Chesterfield, Missouri. As soon as we walked in, a large butterfly landed on DH’s shoulder.

The Butterfly House is in a large atrium, with butterflies everywhere!

At the far end of the atrium was a lovely little resting spot, overlooking the lake just outside the glass.

The house rule is “No touching the butterflies.” The butterflies operate under no such rule, though. They are free to touch you if they want to.

The nursery is fascinating. You can watch the butterflies emerging from the cocoons.

Look how big!

Besides the atrium, there were many displays to enjoy.

There were other insects to explore, including these millipedes.

DS#2 and DDIL joined us for the day.

DD particularly enjoyed the caterpillar sculpture outside the atrium.

After the Butterfly House, we stopped by the Container Store…at least DDIL and I did. DD and the guys went to Circuit City. 🙂 I had never been to the Container Store before. What fun! Then we made the required trip to the book store. Can’t go to the “city” without a stop at a bookstore. A fun day.

Happy Mother’s Day to all the moms out there. Enjoy! ~~Rhonda

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in family | Tagged butterflies, butterfly house, family, spring | Comments (1)

walking the yard

May 9, 2008 – 4:57 pm

This afternoon, I took a walk around the yard to cut some iris that had fallen in the rain. We’ve had more than 3″ of rain since Wednesday, with more coming Sunday to Wednesday. DH stopped by on his lunch hour and we walked around the front yard to see the newly opened irises. But I began at the back door…

At the back door, this little garden bed holds a birdbath and a dogwood tree.

The dogwood leaves are the most lovely shade of green.

The hostas are looking great this year. This is ‘Samauri’ on the left and ‘Waving Wuffles’ on the right.

The fenced garden is looking nice.

How pretty is this mini geranium amidst the sedum?

At the front porch, the columbine bed is a mass of pale pink.

Zak watched as we went by the front porch.

In the front yard we have several beds full of the iris ‘Immortality,’ which has stood up to all the rain better than some of the other irises have.

Happy followed us all over the yard. She loves DH. I snapped a picture of her near one of the Korean lilacs. They are just starting to bloom this week.

Unknown Iris

Iris ‘Red at Night’

Iris ‘Feminine Fire’

Meadow sage in one of the daylily beds…

After the walk, on the way back into the house, I snapped this picture of my little pump fountain.

Love the yard this time of year! ~~Rhonda

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in our garden, spring | Tagged cat, flowers, garden, hostas, iris, spring | Comments (3)

did you see that teddy bear?

May 8, 2008 – 10:27 am

What teddy bear??

As we drove through a small town yesterday, DH saw this dumpster with bear. I missed it first time around, but he asked if I wanted to go back for a picture (I always carry my camera when possible). So we drove around the block and there was teddy, topping the dumpster pile.

An added note of amusement…that’s an 8-track box next to teddy. I wonder how long they were hanging on to that???

I like the picture. Something sort of sad and nostalgic about it, but a little humorous, as well. The weathered building, dilapidated window, etc., all add to the ambiance. 🙂

I was glad I had my camera. It was a fun shot that I would have been sorry to miss. It was actually the only photo set I took yesterday. With all the rain we’ve had, the garden was too wet for picture taking (hate to get my shoes wet) and I was so busy with other things, the camera didn’t see much action.

~~Rhonda

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged teddy bear, trash | Comments (1)

chicken and noodles

May 7, 2008 – 4:39 pm

DD was excited to try her hand at making the noodles for supper for last night.

After simmering the chicken (in enough water to cover, with some dry onion, garlic, celery seed, about 1 tsp basil, 2 tsp chicken bouillon, and salt and pepper), I diced it and returned it to the broth, which I brought back to a boil.

DD gathered the noodle ingredients and made the dough.

1 cup flour
1 egg
2-4 Tablespoons milk (depending on dryness)

She did all the work except for the last of the rolling. It was hard for her to put enough pressure on the dough to make it thin enough.

She enjoyed cutting them…thought that was fun.

She even did the work of dropping them (carefully!) into the boiling broth.

I added one can of cream of chicken soup to the mix. Delicious! And we had enough left over to share with a friend.

DD enjoys cooking and we’re going to try other cooking lessons this summer. Teaching her to make noodles was not hard at all. And she really enjoyed eating them after she had made them herself. We’ll be making them again soon, I’m sure.

Added note…we’ve made these many times since. Easy to make and delicious with chicken or beef.

~~Rhonda 🙂

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in family, Recipes | Tagged chicken and noodles, cooking, DD#3, kitchen, recipe | Comments (11)

first irises of the season

May 6, 2008 – 11:28 pm

The old old purple irises from DH’s family farm are always the first to bloom in our yard, along with the few early dwarf iris. Those vintage purple ones were blooming well when this picture was taken May 1.

This iris is more purple than the picture shows. We brought this one from our previous home where I had purchased it as part of a six piece collection from one of those generic sort of garden mail-order catalogs. That collection played a big part in sparking my interest in irises. So many colors! Who knew! Trouble is, I don’t remember the name of this one…

This small vintage iris came from the family homestead of DH’s great-aunt Lydia. The house is no longer there, but several years ago, as we drove by, we spotted these little white irises growing among the weeds and we liberated a few to bloom in our own yard.

And then there is ‘Immortality’…one of my very favorite irises. It smells wonderful! It’s beautiful, early, prolific and, as an added bonus, it is a rebloomer, given enough moisture. Because we don’t water the gardens once plants are established, we had no reblooming ‘Immortality’ last year due to the summer drought. I hope that is not the case again this year.

This little brown iris was in the yard when we bought our home in 1994. Planted against a brick wall of similar color, it was lost. We’ve moved it around the yard and appreciate it’s early bloom.

My dear friend Liz gave a bag of irises to me years ago when we lived in our previous home. This is my favorite of those. Because I don’t know its rightful name, I call it “Liz’s big white.” 🙂

The Raspberry Blush are so beautiful this year. I plan to move some to the front yard this summer, as well as a few to the west side of the yard. Spread the wealth. 🙂

In the excitement of the robin rescue, I forgot to get a picture of ‘City Lights’ which also opened today. I’ll snap that one tomorrow.

~~Rhonda

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in our garden, spring | Tagged flowers, garden, iris, spring | Comments (2)

Christmas Notebook

sisters’ weekend

quilt along ~ week 3

around the yard

a little yard work

Menu Monday

flutterbies

walking the yard

did you see that teddy bear?

chicken and noodles

first irises of the season

Archives

Categories

Links

Meta